President orders probe into Momand’s detention

KABUL (Pajhwok): The Attorney General Office (AGO) on Tuesday said the president had decreed a commission to investigate the arrest of a provincial council member of northern Balkh province.

A spokesman for the AGO, Jamshid Rasouli, said in a statement to the media that the AGO had issued no arrest warrants for the provincial council member, Mohammad Asif Momand.

According to the decree, the delegation is headed by one of the deputies of the Attorney General and officials from the Center of Prevention of Corruption, the Ministry of Interior, the Directorate of National Security and local authorities.

“The issue will be examined in a comprehensive manner by the delegation as to how responsible and non-responsible persons acted and ultimately a legal decision will follow.”

Meanwhile, Balkh governor’s spokesman Munir Farhad said Momand was arrested by police at the Attorney General’s order last night when Momand landed at the airport in Mazar-i-Sharif.

According to him, during the detention of Momand, some irresponsible gunmen entered the Mualana Jalaluddin Mohammad Balkhi Airport and wounded two security guards in a clash.

Farhad denied Atta Mohammad Noor’s personal guards had arrested Momand at the airport, but confirmed some guards of the governor went to the airport after the attack to help the police outside the airfield.

A brother of Momand, Mustafa Momand told reporters that his brother had been detained by Gvernor, Atta Noor’s private guards.

Asif Momand departed for Mazar-i-Sharif from Kabul on Monday afternoon at around 6pm. He was accompanied by another Balkh PC member Mohammad Ibrahim Khairandish, a key member of Hezb-i-Islami commander for northern zone, Jumma Khan Hamdard’s son Gul Rahman Hamdard.

However, the trio was not allowed to leave the Balkh Airport’s by security forces. Momand in a telephonic contact with Pajhwok Afghan News said the Balkh governor wanted to arrest him.

Mustafa Momand said his brother’s two bodyguards were killed during the arrest of Momand and two of Balkh police personnel were also injured by firing from Noor’s private militiamen.

However, Munir Farhad, called all the allegations of Mustafa Momand as baseless. He said Momand’s arrest warrants had been sent by the NDS prosecution office and crimes prosecution office to the Balkh police headquarters three months back.

He said Asif Momand had been accused of forgery in documents in which the Administrative Office of the President Deputy head’s signature had been fraudulently used.

Farhad said before Momand arrived at the Balkh Airport, about 30 armed men loyal to Gul Rahman Hamdard, Ibrahimkhail and Khairdandish forced their way into the airport through two gates.

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